Late last week, Gov. Brown signed Senate Bill 1038 which eliminates the California Fair Employment and Housing Commission (FEHC) and transfers its duties to the Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH). The new law takes effect on January 1, 2013.
The DFEH has the power to receive, investigate and conciliate claims of employment and housing discrimination. The FEHC currently has the power to conduct hearings on these claims and could subpoena witnesses, publish opinions and publications and conduct mediations at the DFEH’s request. The FEHC also develops regulations.
These duties will now be transferred to the DFEH. The bill creates a Fair Employment and Housing Council within the DFEH and the council will assume the powers and duties of the former commission.
The bill also states that it will “expand specified powers of the department related to complaints, mediations, and prosecutions, and [will] provide mandatory dispute resolution at no cost to the parties involved, as specified.”
We will have more information next year on how this legislation may impact the processing of employment discrimination and harassment claims.
SB 1038 also abolishes the Division of Labor Statistics and Research (DLSR) under the Department of Industrial Relations. The DLSR’s duties will be transferred to the Division of Occupational Health and Safety and the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement.
Author: Gail Cecchettini Whaley
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